:D Hi, this is my first MyTake, and I have been seeing more and more Poly relationships, and to be honest, I have no problem with it, although I find some quite confusing. If I describe something wrong, or your poly yourself and find I said something wrong, feel free to correct me.
[A polyamorous relationship means to have more than 1 partner] I have at least 3 friends who have/are in a poly relationship, and people find it weird or gross.
If people want to date more than one person, it doesn't mean they're cheating on one another, a poly relationship is open, and requires a lot of trust between partners. Some poly relationships have a love triangle, where all partners love each other equally, but some have where both sides only love one end of the triangle, not each other. And Poly relationships could be where [random names for example] Ray has a romantic relationship with Polly but has a sexual relationship with Garrett. Polly and Garrett are not dating, they are just dating Ray. Some partners, Garrett in this situation is the one Ray feels sexually active with, and emotionally attracted to Polly, but not sexually. This does not mean Ray doesn't want an emotional relationship with Garrett, but he may feel more sexual feelings with Garrett than Polly. As you can tell, these kinds of relationships can be confusing and turn into a love octogon. Usually, with these relationships, they're all poly, and okay with each other dating another person. Like [another random example] Evan, Rose, and June are all in a relationship together, but June and Rose are not together, yet they both date Evan. Rose has another partner Yuri, with who she has a romantic relationship since she prefers not to have sex with Evan. June on the other hand does have sex with Evan, and Evan is her only partner.
From the people I know, they say these relationships only truly work with trust and communication. If Rose is sexually active with Yuri, then Rose needs to communicate with Evan that she's together with Yuri, rather than commit to Evan, and have a sexual partner without his knowing. Poly relationships can go either way, where [3rd and final example] Tricia is dating 2 other people and has sex with neither of them. But the 2 partners could be in a sexual relationship together and have Tricia as an emotional partner, rather than sexual. All the partners really need to worry about is that the whole party is happy, and nobody feels left out or used.
If you watch reality tv shows, you'll see at some point a show called "Sister Wives", which circulates around poly relationships, where a man and woman are finding another wife, to either be like a nanny for children, while also being married and having a sexual/emotional connection.
Of course, these relationships don't need to be one person for sex, the other for emotion, it could just be that you like having multiple people as your partner, more support, and more love!
Answering some frequent questions people ask!:
Why do people have multiple partners when one is enough?
Some people need more than one partner because they may not feel valued enough to their one partner, and feel they need another one, for support, and many other reasons.
How do I know if I'm poly?
You'll know when you know. Talking to your partner about it will help too, of course asking questions and experimenting is part of it. If you and your partner are okay with having another partner and end up finding someone for the both of you, and you feel comfortable, or even better with having many people in a relationship, then you may be poly. But if you think it's weird and does not like it at all, then you're not poly.
How do I react to my partner being poly, if I'm not myself?
Well, if they express to you they want another partner, don't take it personally. They just want more than one person to express their feelings and love to, it's not you. Talking about it is crucial, and if you do not support/want it, then express that to them.
Thanks for reading, just wanted to express some clarification <3
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